Game of Love
by KazeNoSakura
Summary: A conclusion to "Change of Heart." After giving his best friend to that shinigami, Kiyomori spent most of his days alone in the park. Then one day, he got hit by a softball and met the most gorgeous angel he had ever seen. #13
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Bleach

**A/N:** Okay, I know this was supposed to be an epilogue to "Change of Heart," but I decided to make this into its own little story. It'll be short, I promise! Enjoy!

_Edited 07/11/2012_

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><p><strong>You're Real?!<strong>

Despite his depression, Kiyomori was happy to see his best friend smile. He was right all along. She really did need him even if Hitsugaya didn't deserve her. He just hoped that the ghost –or shinigami, was it?– took care of her, because in spite of being human rest assured that the bishōnen (pretty boy) would not hesitate to beat the snot out of him.

He couldn't help but chuckle at his empty threat. Who was he kidding? Never mind decking the guy in the face, Karin would be the one to kill her boyfriend. Godly or not, you didn't want to mess with an angered Kurosaki.

He sighed and shook his head. No matter what he did, he couldn't get her out of his mind. He wondered if the pain would ever subside.

"WATCH OUT!"

Shocked by this new voice, Kiyomori frantically looked around him. He didn't understand why someone would shout like that because (a) he was nowhere near the streets, and (b) he was isolated from everyone.

But before he knew it, something hard hit his head and the boy blacked out.

When he came to several minutes later, Kiyomori felt like he was dreaming. He felt light-headed and the world around him was spinning out of control, especially the trees. They looked as if they were dancing to the wind's hymn, swaying and turning. He almost felt sick looking at them.

"Are you okay?"

Turning to the source of the voice, Kiyomori found himself staring at a beautiful figure with luscious lavender hair.

"I know I asked God to help me with my heartache, but I didn't think he'd actually send me an angel," he said, taking a good look at her. "Are you for real?"

Unable to comprehend what he just said, she whistled in a wow-this-guy-is-crazy tone. "I don't know what's worst that lame pick-up line or the fact that I may have given you a concussion." She looked away from his gaze, yelling, "Ren, get over here!"

Looking in the direction she had turned to, Kiyomori saw a blond boy walking towards them.

"Don't tell me you hit someone again." He sighed. "How many more people have to suffer at the expense of your anger, Fia?"

"It's not my fault he didn't listen to me. Just help me get him up!"

He rolled his eyes. "Why is it that every time you do something bad I have to clean up your mess?"

She looked at him with innocent eyes and replied in a sweet voice, "Because you love me."

At her words, Kiyomori suddenly became protective over his guardian angel. Who the hell was this guy and why did he have to take away _his_ angel. Hadn't he suffered enough after practically handing Karin to his rival?

"No!" he yelled, fearing that she would leave him even though they just met. "She's mine! Get your own angel!" Somehow through his daze, Kiyomori had managed to wrap his arms around her waist protectively. "Stay away from her, demon! You hear me?"

He knew he probably sounded insane at the moment, but what did it matter? This was all a dream. And if he couldn't have the girl of his dreams, then he might as well settle for this imaginary one…at least until he recovered from his heartbreak.

Jumping back from his angered and protective stance, Ren simply laughed. "Are you kidding me?! I'd rather be locked away in an asylum than be involved with her romantically! Just take her already!"

More embarrassed than anything, she blushed. "Thanks, Ren. You're such a man," she sarcastically growled. "Now stop being an idiot and get him off of me!"

"No way! The guy looks like he'll bite my head off if I get any closer. You do it yourself."

"Man up, will you? He's just delusional. We have to get hi…"

Halfway through their conversation, Kiyomori's eyes started to droop. He couldn't resist the vertigo any longer.

'_Good dream,'_ he thought and let the darkness overcome him once again.

Ω

When he came to a second time, Kiyomori felt like he got run over by a car. Not only was his head throbbing in pain but he had no idea where he was. And to top it off, that angel from his dreams was still here.

"You're awake!" Without thinking, she hugged the boy and Kiyomori blushed at the proximity. "Thank God!"

_'No,'_ he berated himself. _'This is just a dream. Now wake up!'_

But no matter what he did, the girl just wouldn't disappear.

"Hang on. I'll go get my father."

The angel left minutes later and a man in a white coat entered the room.

"How are you feeling, son?"

Hesitantly, he answered, "I-I'm alright for the most part. But why are y—"

"You were hit by a softball this morning. It's a miracle your skull didn't crack from my daughter's hit. She can hit the thing pretty hard when she's angry."

He gulped. "D-daughter?"

"The girl that brought you in earlier." He held out a flashlight and checked his eyes. "She's as soft as a kitten, but get her mad and…" He whistled. "You just don't want to go there."

Due to his headache, Kiyomori shut his eyes tight and looked away.

"Hmm… You seem alright, but I'll have to keep you overnight just to make sure you don't have any concussions. That okay?"

Unable to respond, the bishōnen simply nodded his head.

"I'll be back in a bit."

When the man left, the girl came back in.

Funny, if the girl from his dreams was a real person and not an angel, then wouldn't that have meant that his words were heard? Kiyomori's eyes widened from the revelation. HE ACTUALLY SAID THOSE THINGS TO HER?! God, as girlie as it sounded, the boy wanted to crawl into a hole right now. He felt like such an idiot!

"I'm sorry about hitting you on the head," she apologized sheepishly. "I was angry at my mother and I just had to let it all out. How was I supposed to know you were there? I mean it was early in the morning, and the place was deserted…"

As the girl continued to babble on about how and why she was there, Kiyomori mentally scolded himself. How could he have been so stupid?! She must have had a riot when he told her all of those things. And that guy… Not cool.

"Uh…" he began, effectively interrupting her. "About earlier…"

The girl seemed to blush at that. "Yeah… You were pretty possessive. Hehe."

"I'm sorry about that. I'm not usually lik—"

She smiled. "No worries. It's been years since someone's ever done that to me." Her blush deepened. "It was endearing, really."

"But what about your boyfriend? He must have been jealous."

"My boyfriend? You don't mean…" A smile made its way to her lips and the girl just had to laugh. "Are you serious? Ren is _not_ my boyfriend!"

"But I thought—"

"Trust me, even if he was the last person on earth, I'd never date him." When her laughs subsided, an idea popped into her head. "Speaking of dates, how about I take you out tomorrow? I kind of owe you for…you know…hitting your head and all."

"I don't know… I don't think I'm ready to date yet…"

"Don't be ridiculous! It'll be fun! And worst comes to worst, you don't even have to think of it as a date. Just think of it as a friend treating another friend. C'mon, please? I'd feel real bad if I didn't treat you to anything."

After much thought and insistence on the girl's part, Kiyomori couldn't find the strength to say no any longer. Maybe he did need this. It would certainly help him get over Karin.

"Okay. It's a date."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Things are about to get a little heated in here…and I don't mean the good kind! XD Thanks to **toshirolovr94**, **Glowing Blue** and **K****urt Kieser** for reviewing! You guys are awesome for sticking with my long-ass series! And just think, after this story we'll finally get to the sequel of "Wasting Your Time." Look forward to it!

_Edited 09/11/2012_

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><p><strong>Not Over You<strong>

The moment he was discharged, the girl from his dreams, whom he now knew as Fiammetta Hatsumi, dragged him away from his hospital bed and into the passenger seat of a sleek black sports car.

"You drive?" Even if he knew the girl's father was a doctor, he didn't expect her to have a car. Fiammetta didn't seem like the type to drive. Then again, looks could be deceiving.

She looked at him weirdly. "Yeah. How do you expect me to go to school?"

"You go to high school in a sports car?" He couldn't believe his eyes. This girl arrived in style.

"High school?" There was a slight pause before the girl shouted with glee. "Oh! You thought I was a high schooler?" She laughed. "I'll take that as a compliment. I'm actually in my second year at University of Karakura." There was another pause before she smirked. "Don't tell me you're still a high schooler?"

He mentally face palmed. Of course she was an older woman. Who the hell would let a kid drive? "Y-yeah, I am. I'm actually in the middle of my second year (aka grade 11)."

"That's cool. You're like what, fifteen? Sixteen?"

"Seventeen," he corrected.

"That's not too bad. We're just three years apart." He looked at her curiously, but she shook her head. "Never mind. So where to?"

Oh right. They were supposed to go on a date, weren't they? Despite saying yes, he still wasn't too sure about that. For one, he was nervous as hell, and two, not only was Fiammetta an older gal but her personality reminded him too much of a certain best friend he personally gave away.

He shrugged. "I don't know. Wherever you want to I guess."

"Hm… How about a light lunch at this cute little French café-restaurant I know?" she questioned. "Ever heard of _Les Deux Magots_?"

He shook his head nervously. "No. Should I have?"

Looking him straight in the eyes, she ignored his question and responded, "Look, Kiyo, you don't have to be nervous."

Kiyomori opened his mouth to deny her accusation but was cut off before he could.

"Oh c'mon! You keep saying you're not ready to date, not to mention you look pretty nervous. Like I said, if you're not looking for a date, then look at this as a friend treating another friend. Fair enough?"

Slowly, he nodded.

"Okay then." Placing the key in the ignition, she turned the engine on and eased out of the hospital's parking lot. "Get ready to experience the ride of your life."

Somehow, Kiyomori felt unsettled when she smirked.

Ω

When Fiammetta parked the car, Kiyomori couldn't be any happier. He still couldn't believe that the girl drove at such an insane speed. If they hadn't reached the restaurant within those first fifteen minutes, he swore he would have been sick. How the hell did she avoid getting caught by the cops anyway?

"Sorry," she quickly apologized. "I didn't think you were squeamish."

"I-it's okay," he replied while opening the door to the café-restaurant for her. Though he looked fine, his mind was still reeling. "I just didn't expect you to drive like that."

She laughed. "Most people don't. But don't worry, when I drop you home I'll be a lot more gentler."

"I'd have to hold you on that, Fia, 'cause next time your car won't be so lucky."

She smiled. "And I'd hate for that to happen to my baby."

When a waiter came to greet them, Kiyomori was surprised to be greeted by that blond boy from the park. Why the hell was he working here of all places?

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Fia and that boy she knocked out." Ren examined the boy carefully before turning to Fiammetta. "So now you're dating the people you hit? Classy, sis."

She blushed. "Shut up, Ren! I'm just paying him a lunch. It's the least I could do after hitting him with a softball."

"Really? And here I thought you finally found yourself a decent boyfriend." He smirked. "The guy seemed pretty protective yesterday."

Mortified, Kiyomori simply looked away and blushed in silence.

She sighed. "Kiyo, this is my _oh so loveable_ half-brother, Ren. Ren, this is Kiyomori."

"I absolutely _adore_ the love you put into introducing me."

"Just ignore him and he'll learn to go away," Fiammetta advised.

"I am hurt, little sister," Ren said in a mock-hurt tone. "You'd think you'd be a lot nicer to me since I am your family."

Ignoring him, she replied, "Can you just show us to a table? I'd hate to complain to the owner about her annoying blond waiter."

He stiffened. "R-right away, _Miss Hatsumi_." He took two menus and led them to a booth. "Can I start you off with something to drink?"

"That's more like it. I'll have a sprite, please," Fiammetta replied. "No ice."

"And I'll have a coke, please."

"Right away, Miss, Sir. I'll be right back."

Curious about their earlier conversion, Kiyomori just had to ask her about it. "Why did Mr. I-love-teasing-my-half-sister suddenly turn into Mr. I'm-waiter-of-the-year?"

She smirked devilishly. "Simple. Our mom owns the restaurant."

"Your mom? Is that why we came here?"

She shrugged. "Pretty much."

"That's cool. I bet you're pretty popular at school."

"Yeah…" She awkwardly looked away and sighed. "Well, it's not all it's cracked up to be."

For a moment, Kiyomori thought he saw a tinge of sorrow in her eyes, but it disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.

"But enough about me. You said you were in your second year of high school, right? What do you plan on doing after that?"

He pondered on that question for a bit. In all honesty, he had no idea. Now that his lover loved another, there was no point in following Karin to Tokyo… God, did he just think that? Man was he obsessed. He definitely needed this almost-date.

"I don't know…" He shrugged. "Maybe take a couple of years off and work. I'm not sure what I want to do just yet."

"Really?" Her face lit up like a Christmas tree. It was cute. "Maybe you could work here. My mom's been looking for another male waiter. The last one she hired is _annoying_."

As if on cue, Ren popped up and brought them their drinks. "You talking 'bout me?"

"Yep." She jabbed a thumb in Kiyomori's direction and said, "Kiyo here said he needed a job. I merely suggested yours."

He scoffed. "As if Mom would let you. She loves me and she'd never replace me. We do need a new dishwasher, however. Maybe you could have him do that."

"She only loves you because you do everything she says, idiot."

"Doesn't matter."

"Ugh, whatever," she mumbled. "Suck-up."

"What was that?"

"I sai—"

Before this mini sibling war got out of hand, Kiyomori quickly interjected, "I've chosen what I want. Could we order, please?"

Ren looked at him oddly before answering, "Sure…"

After giving their orders, effectively forcing Ren to leave, Kiyomori sighed. "What was that about?"

"Oh, that? It's nothing, really." Apparently she still seemed unperturbed by the fight. "Ren and I always do that. It's our unique way of showing our sibling love."

Unique was right. If he didn't know better, he thought a brawl was about to break out.

"You're so cute."

He blushed. Fiammetta thought he was cute?

Fiammetta seemed to have realized her mistake, however, and unknowingly blushed alongside him. "I-I mean what you did was cute, n-not that you were cute. I m-mean you are cute, but not… Urgh!" Her blush deepened and she quickly looked away. "Sorry. Let's just…forget about that, 'kay?"

Wordlessly, he nodded. Although he was shocked by her words, Kiyomori also felt a little hurt when she told him to forget about her earlier comment. But why was that?

"Anyway…"

The door to the restaurant opened and Kiyomori's eyes widened. Out of all the restaurants in Karakura, why did Karin and Hitsugaya have to walk into this one? And since when did Karin wear cute outfits that showed off her cleavage? As far as he knew, Karin never _ever_ wore that kind of stuff.

"Hello?" She waved a hand in front of his face. "Earth to Kiyo? What the hell are you looking at?"

Finally snapping out of his trance, he shook his head and looked at Fiammetta. "Sorry about that. That girl you just saw is my best friend. I've never seen her dress like that, so it was freaky seeing her like that. You were saying?"

She scrutinized him a little before sighing. "I asked if you had any siblings."

"Me? Not really. But I do have a somewhat high maintenance cousin."

Somewhere along his explanation, his eyes couldn't help but follow to where Karin was moving. It was just his luck for his best-friend-slash-kind-of-ex-lover and her boyfriend to sit two booths down from them. Kiyomori had the perfect view of Karin and Hitsugaya, something he wasn't quite pleased about.

He frowned.

"Do you…like her?" she suddenly asked. Though short, her question spoke volumes.

"W-what do you mean?" His gaze was directed back to her. "She's just a best friend, Fia."

"No, she isn't," Fiammetta replied sadly. "I see the way you look at her. It's almost as if you…_love_ her."

Unconsciously, his eyes drifted back to Karin and he saw her laughing with Hitsugaya. Why the hell did he still feel so jealous? He should be having the time of his life, what with him going on a sort-of-date with a beautiful woman like Fiammetta.

"See, you're doing it again."

This had caught his attention. "What do you mean? I'm not doing anything."

Feigning ignorance was stupid, he knew that much, but what else could he do? He got caught looking at another girl while he was supposedly on a date with Fiammetta. Somehow, Kiyomori couldn't help but feel like a jerk and a cheat.

She sighed. "Was she your first love?"

Flabbergasted, he remained quiet and looked away.

By then, Ren had brought them their food and promptly left to take care of his new customers.

"I'll take that as a yes." There was a long deafening pause before she asked, "Do you want to be with her?"

Again, he was silent. Did he want to be with her? Despite saying he was okay with her going back to Hitsugaya, he still felt hurt. Even now, he still couldn't get Karin out of his mind.

"Another yes," she whispered solemnly. "Do you… Do you want me to help you break them up? I mean we're just friends, right? It's not like I _actually_ liked you or anything."

Did he want them to break-up? Of course he'd want to because he still had feelings for… No! What the hell was he thinking? After everything he had just went through, this girl was ready to make him go through that pain again? There was no fucking way!

Kiyomori was angered more than anything now and he gritted his teeth. "Would you just drop it!" he yelled and pounded the table. His action had effectively gotten the attention of everyone in _Les Deux Magots_. "I gave her to Hitsugaya, okay? I gave her to him because she deserved better! Do you want to throw away all of my hard work?" Without even realizing it, the bishōnen raised his voice and glared at her. "Make me feel pain all over again? Do you?"

Fiammetta seemed scared at first, but after a few seconds, she seemed to have found her voice. "So that's how it is, huh?" she asked bitterly as her bangs shadowed her eyes.

Kiyomori could not believe he had just exploded like that. How could he have been so spiteful towards Fiammetta after she had shown him nothing but kindness?

"Wait, Fia, that's not what I—"

"I don't need to hear your petty excuses!" Fiammetta abruptly stood up. "Goodbye Kiyomori. If you're lucky, we'll never meet again."

As she left the restaurant, Kiyomori sat there in shock. What the hell had he done? After everything she had done for him, cared for him, even suggested that she'd help him get together with Karin even though they were on a fake-slash-real date, he yelled at her. And what was worst was that he could have sworn he saw her cry. There had to be a way to apologize. He didn't even care if she didn't want to be his friend anymore. He just felt so guilty.

As Kiyomori got up to chase after her, Ren stood in his way. "Don't. She's already gone through enough. Just stay away from her."

_'Gone through enough?' _he wondered._ 'Gone through what exactly?'_

"But I didn't mean to say that," he reasoned. "I was just furious and I unconsciousl—"

He shook his head and threw Kiyomori a deathly glare. "I don't care whether it was said purposely or not. I don't want you near my sister."

"But—"

"Stay. Away. From her," he repeated, practically hissing each word. "I might be restricted to harming customers, but so help me God, if I catch you outside trying to talk to her, you're a dead man. Understood?"

Shit. What the hell was he supposed to do now? Judging by that tone and Ren's glare, he knew she'd be under a 24/7 watch. There was no way he could approach her now.

Still… Even at the risk of being killed, he felt like he needed to do this because consequences or not, he'd apologize one way or another.


End file.
